


Unforgiving Ambience

by orphan_account



Category: Free!
Genre: Fairy Tale AU - The Little Mermaid, M/M, almost, makoto is mostly eye candy with a bit of sad on the side, merfolk, rin likes makoto almost as much as he likes fireworks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-02
Updated: 2014-02-02
Packaged: 2018-01-10 21:41:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1164840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An adaptation of the Little Mermaid, where Rin is a merman too curious even for the sake of his own preservation and he happens upon a man unlike any other he's seen before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unforgiving Ambience

**Author's Note:**

  * For [spazmoid](https://archiveofourown.org/users/spazmoid/gifts).



Even though he was not one well-known for his ability to adapt, Rin had found himself getting progressively more and moreexcited at the sight of the ship sailing over his head.

The water was darker than usualand because of this he knew it had to be nightfall by now above the surface of the sea. He followed beneath this strange ship slowly, his head tilted back so that he could keep it within his sight. Rin, as a consequence of his accursed anatomy, could not turn unto his back like his friend. On account of this, said friend often times enjoyed spinning like a slippery eel before him - if only to rub it in Rin’s face at his lack of maneuverability. Sousuke, though, was never one for subtlety.

But neither was Rin for that matter.

Lost in his thoughts concerning his friend, it wasn’t until a sudden spark erupted and the water surrounding him became brightened in a colourful ambience that Rin seemed to snap back to the present. After swallowing back the instinctive surprise that urged him to run, the merman instead indulged in his heart’s pull of natural curiosity and moved forward to explore.

 

* * *

 

Despite Rin’s better -and more collectively shared by other sea-dwellers’- judgement he swam up for the first time in years to the surface beyond his watery domain.

Above the water, the sky was bursting with lights. All colours – red, blue, green, and even the occasional gold - shimmered and flew high up into the night sky.

Rin’s heart pounded faster - wilder! - than it’d ever had before even during his wildest thrills of competition. He stared slack-jawed into the bottomless sky while music filled his ears in time with the dancing lights. He couldn’t locate the source of the sounds yet but his mind was far too caught up in the wonderful orchestra of colours chasing away the coldness of the dark night around him to even care.

_Until there was laughter._

And amongst that laughter there was one- just one- that despite being loud was not in the least bit disturbing to his ears. In fact, it rang with a sensitivity against his eardrums that, for once, Rin could feel a shiver creeping up his spine not caused by the chill of the water.  The air around him became heavy with the sound, thick with an expression he couldn’t quite translate, and it left him feeling even more daunted about his presence there. But even as the fear continued to prick at his mind’s edge the merman found that it was his inquisitive nature that would win yet again.

He turned towards the sound and his eyes found the source in the form of a bizarre two-legged creature – a human, he realized almost dumbly only a second later. As he swam quietly closer to the tall manRin noticed that he was still chuckling and the texture of his voice now matched a softness in the man’s features that even Rin could observe from his safe distance away from the ship.

“Haru, you know you don’t have to listen to Ren and Ran when they tell you stuff like that.” The man was saying, and Rin felt the uneasecalm within his chest just from listening to him.

“It’s your coronation.” A gruff voice answered the man from a place Rin couldn’t see due to his current angle. “They told me as your right hand I had to present you as a ‘worthy visage’.” A sigh could just barely be made out before the voice lost what little irritation it had to instead be replaced by complete disinterest. “It’s not like I promised otherwise to you, it probably would have been expected of me to do something like this.”

“The difference is you’re not one to normally care about what’s expected of you, Haru.” the man replied, sounding almost melancholic as he did. “You know this isn’t exactly a happy occasion.”

“It’s meant to be. Everyone’s… Everyone’s trying.” The person called Haru replied, quieter now and Rin had to strain to hear him.

Rather than reply back as Rin had expected, the man said nothing but instead turned from where he was leaning on his elbows against the wooden railings to instead stare out into the ocean. Rin slung another curse at his inflexible spine due to this while he strained to lean back and paddle his fin forward to push him further back. He wanted to see the man’s face but was worried about being heard even amidst all the music and laughter.

Why had the man gone quiet?

He didn’t understand that what he saw was a forlorn expression. He just looked so lost… sad even….yet it was in a way that was almost accepting of his circumstance.

And it was then that a thought caught up to him and caused Rin paused.

This guy was royalty? A coronation… hell, he was a prince! Or...no…. not a prince anymore apparently….because wouldn’t a coronation cement this man as a king?!

Rin studied the brunet’s soft features that still somehow looked gorgeous with such a sad expression. This newly appointed king didn’t look very happy… in fact he didn’t look like much of a King at all right then. He looked to be about Rin’s age and he looked like he was mourning rather than celebrating like the rest of his crew. He watched the dark waters as if seeking condolence within its depths, searching for some form of comfort in the darkness; it made Rin feel as if the man was asking for comfort from him instead and he wasn’t sure how comfortable he was with that. Even so there was a pull within his chest, a yearning for those viridescent eyes to find him within the water.

No.

Wait.

That’d be bad, actually.

Very bad.

Quickly, Rin swallowed down the feeling of want – the want to reach out, to touch the man’s parted mouth as he pulled himself up to command him into wiping that hopeless look off of his face due to its ruining the handsome.

Yet it wasn’t until the man finally looked away that Rin let his more sensible instinct take over this time and he dove back into the water, swimming away as fast as he could from the ship and the unnamed king he had longed to touch.

It wouldn’t be until he was well below the sea once more that Rin found he was at peace with their distance enough that he could chance another look back. From this distance the ship looked… unsteady. Swaying.

He didn’t want to go back, didn’t want to see that person again, because even he could understand that what he was feeling wasn’t just simple curiosity but an attraction that was not even star-crossed but something even more tragic and impossible.

However, the ship truly was rocking now and Rin remembered the odd chill from before. A storm? So rapidly coming to hit them in the middle of summer? No way.

He spun around, snapping his fin forward, not really thinking of his own imminent danger.

But Rin had only managed to swim up halfway when the surface suddenly burst with gold, and then everything was scarlet.

 

* * *

 

_Heavy, so fucking heavy…_

_why the hell is he wearing all these jewels anyways…._

_oh shit he’s slipping, I’ve gotta-!!_

* * *

_No, don’t- !_

_You have to--_

_You can’t drown, you can’t-!!_

 

* * *

 

The prince was deadweight in his arms when he dragged them both onto the shore. But thinking as much terrified Rin, who was still praying to every sea and land god whose names he didn’t even know, for that same dead weight to be a figurative rather than a literal phrase.

The rough texture of the sand razed his tail, his scales grating against the crunch of the sand as he pulled the man up as far as he could. It hurt, trying to pull him up hurt like hell, but he had to get his head out of the water’s reach.

Finally when they were in far enough Rin pushed himself up on his elbows and brought his body up over the man’s, his long hair dripping salty drops onto his face. The sun on his pale back burned him, despite only rising newly. Swimming through the night to find the nearest shore was something he didn’t want to go through again, ever, but he had more important things to worry about. Such as why the human wasn’t breathing.

He tried to shake him, yell out for him to wake up but nothing. He received no response, not even a breath out and it terrified him. Was he dead?

He tried pushing at his arms, his chest, opening his mouth and maybe if I move him around he’ll get up, he can’t have died, there’s no way, he was sure to keep his head above the water, he wasn’t bleeding so why won’t he wa-

“Hh-.. Hhhn…”

The moan, soft and sweet despite the awful grating and hoarseness was music to his ears and Rin pushed himself up on the heels of his hands immediately, looking up to the prince’s face. He was stirring. _He’s alive!_

It wasn’t like any other, that moment Rin had taken by chance that was not meant for him he’d reckon later. Now, under the sun, he seemed so much more vibrant, handsome, and living in a way that exuded peace. His hair was a softer brown than the fire had made it seem and his was tanned, such a contrast from his own pale flesh when he brought his hand up to touch his face, marvelling at what he saw. Then his eyelids twitched, his brows furrowed, and slowly, enough to make Rin’s chest hurt in anticipation, he opened his eyes.

It was a sight unlike any other he’d seen before in all his life, Rin had forgotten how to breathe.

A green richer than the most beloved moss plants where he’d come from and a depth that could only be matched by the very ocean itself, he was captivated, caught, and drawn in without a struggle. He had leaned in closer, eager to see more, to feel more of him, maybe go in just close enough to touch, he wanted to taste him, see how the air treated his flesh after the sea left him drained, touch his lips to hi—

“Mako-chan!! Mako-chan?!”

All of a sudden, the hook in his chest that had him pulled to the prince was wrenched out, painfully, leaving him behind. His skin felt cold and his head snapped up, dazed when torn out of his moment with his prince.

It was in the hills above them, the cliff, a blond young man and another slightly taller one with dark hair. The blond had a large… beast next to him, twitching and jerking around randomly until it turned to him.

He knew the feeling of being targeted, and that one hasty realization finally slammed his brain back into gear. With a surge of strength he didn’t know he could tap into after the night he had, Rin pushed himself off of Makoto and did a roll back into the water and once his tail hit the sand he was diving back into the water and out of sight.

Of course, apparently he couldn’t put too much credit to his own scope of self-preservation, because he still didn’t leave. A small hope, stupid, idiotic, pointless kept him close. He had to hear his voice again.

“Mako-chan! Mako-chan, thank god, oh man it’s you and you’re okay!” the blond launched himself onto Rin’s prince, catching him in a hug that had the latter’s face twisting in pain.

“Y-Yeah, Na-Nagi—C-Can you p-please-?” he wheezed out, a hand that looked like it had invisible rocks strapped to it rising up to pat the exuberant two legged monstrosity that kept squeezing him on the back.

Rin wanted to go up and tell him to quit it, he hit his ribs really badly don’t touch him there, but the black haired guy seemed to beat him to it in some form because he was already pulling the blond off. “Makoto. You… You okay?” The uncertainty in his voice was heavy and his eyes were lowered in concern for his friend and Rin recognized his voice as the person the prince had been talking to before on the ship but that barely mattered now.

His hopes were founded.

Makoto.

He had learned his name.

 

* * *

 

Haruka pulled him up, and the warmth of his hand was a comfort that kept his bones from shaking quite so badly. He could always count on Haruka to calm him down.

Except this time it didn’t work. He held onto Haru’s hand a moment longer but his eyes were already searching. Out at the sea he was sure- There was someone, there had to be-

“-hadn’t thought we’d find you, Haru-chan was getting angry at everybody but then Niwa caught your scent nearby so we came searching for you and here you are, Mako-chan!!” Nagisa was rambling, going on to make some noise to keep their situation from growing in tension but Makoto could barely keep his head up without feeling it spin a little so standing up took him a while.

“Makoto, what is it?” Haru was asking him, a concerned hand landing on his shoulder but even that couldn’t shake off the feeling of something else hanging over his head. He continued to scan the empty ocean, vast and bright, innocent and so very beautiful but there was something, there had to be someone there he couldn’t have made it back on his own, no one just washed up on shore so far out into the sea. At least not alive anyway.

“I thought I… I thought I saw someone.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading until here, even though I cant say this is a decent piece of work at all. I was most comfortable with this prompt, so I hope the recipient doesn't mind it!  
> I didnt explain everything here, but Rin is also royalty. And this only encompasses their initial contact and Rin rescuing Makoto. I do have an idea for a continuation so I might go down that road but this is as far as I can write for now, what with school at all.  
> I hope to continue it one day, but Happy Birthday to my dearest venus child, Rin Matsuoka!
> 
> EDIT; THANK YOU SO MUCH TO AMEE FOR BETAING FOR ME i fixed it up and now its kind of a lot better. but only thanks to amee. thank u amee.


End file.
